Co-pending application Ser. No. 09/095,991 discloses an ostomy appliance faceplate with a concealed coupling ring flange and an in-line method for manufacturing such a product. Such an appliance is one component of a two-piece appliance, the other component being a collection pouch having a flexible plastic coupling ring capable of being mated with and disconnected from the coupling ring of the faceplate. The faceplate includes not only a flexible plastic coupling ring, typically with an attachment flange, but also a multi-layer adhesive wafer joined to the faceplate coupling ring. The wafer includes a layer of moisture-absorbing adhesive skin barrier material having a bodyside surface covered by a removable release sheet and an opposite surface covered by a thin, flexible (and preferably elastomeric) backing film. The flange of the coupling ring is secured to the backing film by heat-sealing or by other suitable means.
In the aforementioned co-pending application, a flexible cover layer extends over the front surface of the flange of the coupling ring and the surface of the backing film located radially outwardly beyond the flange. Therefore, the flange is sandwiched between the cover layer and the film of the wafer. The advantages are partly aesthetic since such construction enhances the low-profile appearance of the faceplate assembly and provides an unbroken surface extending from the coupling portion of the ring all the way to the outer periphery of the faceplate. However, the construction also has functional advantages since it protects the edge portions of the coupling ring's flange from pulling away from the film of the wafer (or vice versa), prevents liquids or particulates from entering the space between the periphery of the flange and the film, and enhances the security of attachment between the flange and the backing film of the wafer.
Co-pending application Ser. No. 09/095,991 discloses an in-line method for making ostomy faceplates in which all operations are carried out simultaneously and continuously to yield finished products, thereby eliminating problems and expenses of handling, storage, and transfer commonly associated with prior manufacturing techniques utilizing extrusion processes. It has been found that the injection/compression molding method is particularly amenable to coordination with automated production of other components, resulting in a combination of in-line operations in which the assembling procedures are integrated with the molding, forming, cutting, and other parts-making operations to provide a continuity of automated steps culminating in the production of finished products. Most advantageously, therefore, the faceplates of this invention may be produced by the method of the co-pending application. Alternatively, the faceplates of this invention may be made by other procedures and processes well known in the art.
An important aspect of the present invention lies in the discovery that the advantages of a faceplate having the features disclosed in said co-pending application may be greatly increased if the front or pouchside surface of the wafer is recessed to receive a portion of the flexible coupling ring, thereby substantially reducing the thickness of the faceplate in the area of the coupling ring. The result is a faceplate of extremely low profile which, when mated with the ring of a pouch, results in a two-piece ostomy appliance that is flatter, less conspicuous, and more comfortable to wear than the faceplates of two-piece appliances known heretofore. Furthermore, since such coupling rings are designed to flex in use, thereby complying with body movements and external forces, the relative thinness of the wafer lying directly beneath and supporting the faceplate coupling ring promotes even greater flexibility of the ring in use and further reduces the possibility that unintentional coupling might occur. Where such a faceplate coupling ring is provided with an attachment flange, the pouch-facing surface of that flange preferably lies along the same plane as the adjacent surface of the wafer, resulting in a construction in which the flange is concealed and protected against exposure to forces that might otherwise tend to pry it away from the wafer. Such advantages are particularly apparent where a flexible cover layer (preferably of soft non-woven material) extends over both the flange and the surface of the wafer adjacent to the flange, thereby completely concealing and embedding the flange beneath the flat unbroken surface of the cover layer.
Other features, objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the drawings and specification.